1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to a touch pen and a mobile terminal having the same, and more particularly, to a touch pen and a mobile terminal which are configured to prevent an incorrect orientation of the touch pen when inserting the touch pen into the mobile terminal, and which provide an ergonomically enhanced grip when holding the touch pen.
2. Description of the Related Art
In general, a mobile terminal is an electronic device which enables a user to engage in wireless communication with another party. At present, design efforts are under way to decrease the size, thickness, and weight of mobile devices to enhance portability. A recent trend is to provide multimedia features that may perform any of various functions.
Future mobile terminals are expected to be used as multi-function and multi-purpose devices. These terminals will be of decreased size and weight relative to present-day devices, and will be readily configurable for use with various multimedia environments or Internet environments.
Conventional mobile terminals are equipped to perform wireless high-speed data communication in addition to wireless audio communication. A conventional mobile terminal may include a data input and output device, a speaker, a microphone, and an antenna. A mobile terminal such as a smart phone or electronic pad generally uses a touch pad or touch screen as a data input device.
A touch pen configured in the shape of a writing instrument may be employed as an auxiliary device for manipulating a touch pad or touch screen which is housed in a main body of the mobile terminal. A removable touch pen may be provided which is separable from the mobile terminal.
Such a conventional touch pen and a mobile terminal for housing the touch pen are described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2A to 2C.
FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a mobile terminal having a conventional touch pen, and FIGS. 2A to 2C are front views illustrating a conventional touch pen and a pen point.
Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2A to 2C, a mobile terminal 10 includes a pen receiving groove 11 for inserting and withdrawing a conventional touch pen 13. The touch pen 13 includes a pen point 14 for contacting a touch screen or a touch pad, a pen grip 15 corresponding to a holding area when the user uses the touch pen 13, and a pen clip 16 protruded at an end portion of the pen grip 15.
The touch pen 13 may be withdrawn from, or inserted into, the pen receiving groove 11 provided in the mobile terminal 10.
As the body of the conventional touch pen 13 is generally formed in a cylindrical shape, the outer edge circumference of the pen point 14 may be formed, for example, in a circle, oval, or polygon.
That is, a cross sectional area of the touch pen 13 defined by an outer edge circumference of the touch pen 13 may be formed in one of a plurality of symmetrical shapes including an oval shown in FIG. 2A, a circle shown in FIG. 2B, or a polygon shown in FIG. 2C.
For housing and withdrawal of the touch pen 13, the shape of a cross-sectional area comprising an inner wall circumference of the pen receiving groove 11 is formed in a shape corresponding to the shape of the cross sectional area of the touch pen 13. That is, a section of the pen receiving groove 11 exposed at a surface of the mobile terminal 10 may be formed in one of a plurality of symmetrical shapes including a circle, oval, triangle, or polygon of a symmetric structure, or a portion thereof, so as to permit insertion of the touch pen 3 into the pen receiving groove 11.
The touch pen 13 may be equipped with, for example, one or more side buttons for controlling operation of the touch pen 13 in an intermediate portion thereof. The touch pen 13 may also be equipped with the pen clip 16 in an end portion thereof.
In order to mount elements such as the pen clip 16 or the one or more side buttons in the touch pen 13, a surface of the pen grip 15 may be protruded from the touch pen 13. As additional functions and elements are added to the touch pen 13, a surface of the penholder 15 may protrude from the touch pen 13.
The conventional configuration of the touch pen 13 and the pen receiving groove 11 may exhibit one or more of the following shortcomings.
Due to the fact that an area defined by the outer edge circumference of a periphery of the pen point 14 is formed in a symmetrical shape, when the user inserts the touch pen 13 into the pen receiving groove 11, it is difficult for the user to determine the correct orientation in which to insert the touch pen 13 into the pen receiving groove 11.
Moreover, due to the fact that a first area defined by a section of the inner wall circumference of the pen receiving groove 11, as well as a second area defined by the outer edge circumference of the touch pen 13, both have symmetrical shapes, it is difficult for the user to find the correct orientation for inserting the touch pen 13 into the pen receiving groove 11. That is, in a state in which the user does not know the correct orientation, the user must attempt to insert the touch pen 13 into the pen receiving groove 11 on a trial-and-error basis.
For example, when the user inserts the touch pen 13 into the pen receiving groove 11, even if the pen point 14 is inserted, an erroneous insertion may be achieved in which a protruded portion of an end portion of the touch pen 13 such as the pen clip 16, or an intermediate portion of the touch pen 13, may not be inserted into a groove 12.
When such erroneous insertion occurs, the touch pen 13 must be extracted from the pen receiving groove 11, and another attempt must be made to properly insert the touch pen 13 into the pen receiving groove 11. This process needs to be repeated until the touch pen 13 is properly inserted.
Therefore, conventional configurations of the touch pen 13 and the pen receiving groove 11 of the mobile terminal 10 result in inconvenience to the user. Furthermore, when erroneous insertions of the touch pen 13 are repeated over time, physical wear or damage such as scratching or deformity of the pen receiving groove 11 and the touch pen 13 may occur.